


hey soulmate, you there?

by orphan_account



Series: Soulmates AU [4]
Category: Marvel
Genre: Alternate Universe - Soulmates, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-02
Updated: 2020-03-02
Packaged: 2021-02-28 00:27:42
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,017
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22984777
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Relationships: Steve Rogers/Tony Stark
Series: Soulmates AU [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1651798
Comments: 4
Kudos: 140





	hey soulmate, you there?

Tony hates how the universe functions.

It has nothing to do with the fact that his skin is clean from ink while everyone else has something on them as soon as they hit 18.

Nope. Nothing of sorts.

It's a purely unbiased opinion.

Tony hates how the universe functions.

-

"Maybe you're right. Maybe I'm a traditionalist." Pepper says as she packs her bags, nothing much to pack since she barely even slept two nights with him, and she moves out.

"I have words, Tony. And they're not yours."

Hell, does that hurt.

But Tony's good with carrying on.

Got that thing tackled and wrapped around his fingers like a second skin. If there is anything else he deserves a PhD in, it 's in moving on.

\- or maybe not.

-

"If you'd just stop thinking about it -,"

"Even you have words, honey bear."

Rhodey makes a face, "What do you mean, even I? Am I not supposed to? Not deserving enough?"

"Fuck off," Tony shoves him good naturedly. Rhodey is an ass when it comes to throwing Tony's own words back at him.

"Yeah, yeah. iIll fuck off when you stop thinking about my best friend like that." Rhodey whacks the back of his head.

-

Then one day, it burns.

Tony drops everything at once and rushes into the nearest room with a mirror.

"Of all places," he curses, unbuttoning his shirt to reveal the skin overlying his heart with a fading glow that leaves black letters in its awakening;

_I had a date_

"Wow." tony exclaims. Torn between clinging to the thrill of finally getting something his soulmate say tattooed across his chest, and sinking with the disappointment that his soulmate is out there having dates. With not him but someone else.

In the end, he chooses the former. "Well at least, it's something."

And it's something alright.

Because his soulmate is a surprisingly quiet one. There are days when Tony waits and waits and nothing appears.

The first time it happens, he loses his shit.

Terrified that his soulmate has gone and gotten themself killed and he wrecks a havoc, starting a fight with JARVIS, trying to trace a ghost.

How can he locate his soulmate and save them when he doesn't even know who they are?

When he brings that up to Pepper, she quirks an unimpressed eyebrow and says, "Welcome to the soulmate life you envied so much."

Until, his skin burns again.

Hot and delightfully comforting as he shoves the blankets and runs to the bathroom.

"Sheesh." he breathes, caressing the words with careful fingers;

_Trying to get me back in the world?_

He sleeps for the first time in three days that night.

He grows accustomed to the silence after that. He allows himself to only freak out after it has been five days.

But he worries nonetheless.

How can he not when it's his soulmate? Someone who waited until he's 42 to show up and now that they're here, they have to go all silent and make him worry periodically.

With everyday that passes, he grows curious and with it, he falls deeper and deeper.

\- unbeknownst to him.

And then one day, Agent barges in and asks him to assemble with the other Avengers.

He puts the suit on and fights with gods.

He takes the suit off and fights with a national icon.

He puts the suit on again and murmurs a goodbye to the soulmate he'll never meet to play Icarus with a nuke on his back.

When he opens his eyes, it's bright blue - bluer than the sky - and he's staring into Steve Rogers' eyes.

"Please tell me nobody kissed me," he jokes like reading of a weather report.

Rogers chuckles, Thor reminds them of still unfinished business.

They have Shawarma afterwards.

Tony goes home and finds a new set of words;

_It seems to run on some form of electricity._

\- and his breath dies in his chest.

-

Rhodey slaps his face with a bag of frozen peas. "Why do you always break your nose in the suit?"

Tony tries to say something but the cold is relieving over the persistent throbbing and he groans instead.

That night, he waits until Rhodey has his mouth full with chow mein before telling him that his soulmate is Steve Rogers.

He signals for JARVIS to save the camera feed while doubling over in laughter.

Once Rhodey is done accusing him for messing around and glowering at him, he admits in a more sombre tone that he was telling the truth, not a lie

"Think he hates me," he says after and Rhodey fixes him with a death glare.

"Talk to him first," he pokes with the greasy chopsticks.

Tony agrees with multiple ouches, but never follows through.

So when Rogers showed up at his penthouse on a Sunday afternoon, he's rightfully surprised.

Tony makes drinks which they both don't drink, but clung to with life as they sit on the same table while Rogers work his nerves to get his words out.

In the end, it's Tony who speaks first.

"You have to say something for it to show up on me. You're awfully quiet, you know," he adds when rogers looks up at him.

Tony shrugs, shielding the hammering in his chest as he sniffs on his whiskey.

Rogers puts down his glass with a quiet thud and undo the first two buttons of his dreadful plaids.

_You're awfully quiet you know_

\- stares back at him, two fingers width beneath rogers' left clavicle.

Tony clutches the glass in his hands tighter. "I don't strip on first date,"

The corner of Rogers' mouth quirks up as his legs finally stop shaking.

Finally!

"Then, allow me to ask you out for a second" Rogers says matter of factly and Tony -

Bless his weak heart - just about drops the glass because right then is when his skin starts to burn and this time, he doesn't need to find a mirror to know what it says.

"Eight, tomorrow. I have my evening full today. Got a movie to watch for my first date."


End file.
